October 15, 2013

Across Iowa, copper theft from electric utilities is a serious crime. These thefts can cause power surges, outages, fires, explosions and injuries to utility workers or innocent people coming into contact with tampered equipment. In addition, post-theft repairs can run into tens of thousands of dollars for each incident.

To combat this growing threat, Iowa’s electric utilities have teamed up with Crime Stoppers to create a special toll-free phone line (800-452-1111) so citizens can report suspicious activities at an electric utility’s substation – or around other equipment, such as a transformer, power pole or even the meter at a residence, farm or business.

Once a tip is received, Crime Stoppers will contact the local sheriff or other designated law enforcement agency about the possible crime. After the caller has seen or heard on the local news that a crime has been solved, he or she can call Crime Stoppers to receive instructions for claiming a cash reward up to $1,000, although most rewards range from $20-200. The caller’s identity and other information will remain anonymous throughout the process.

With scrap copper selling for about $3 a pound, thieves – both amateurs and pros – are risking their lives for no more than 10 to 25 pounds of copper wire worth less than $100.

Many of the thefts are small ones, but they add up to big dollars. For example, 15 residential customers at one electric utility each lost a meter loop – the 17-foot copper line in conduit that runs to their electric meter. The replacement cost was more than $500 per location.

On a larger scale, thieves cut a hole in a substation fence and stole 15-20 feet of copper wire with a scrap value of around $50. In the process, the intruders cut a ground wire to a regulator, causing it to fail and creating a 3-hour outage for 900 customers. The estimated cost for repairs to the electric utility and its customers totaled about $42,000.

Some thieves don’t even enter a substation to commit their crimes. In a recent case, thieves cut all the ground wires – except one – off the fences surrounding a substation. The criminals took a big chance in guessing that the one line they didn’t cut would prevent them from getting a fatal 69,000-volt static shock. In another case, burglars used a pickup truck to pull copper ground wires from several power poles just installed to replace storm-damaged poles along a rural road.

"These thieves are risking their lives and the lives of others for a very small return on their ‘investment’ in crime,” said Bob Dickelman, spokesperson for the project. “The new Crime Stoppers program will help deter these criminals. We want the eyes of our communities to help us stop copper theft, prevent unnecessary outages and keep Iowans safe.”

Electric utilities and organizations involved in the creation and continuing support of the Crime Stoppers program to stop copper theft in Iowa include Alliant Energy, the Iowa Association of Electric Cooperatives, the Iowa Association of Municipal Utilities and MidAmerican Energy Company. For more information, contact Bob Dickelman at 515-229-3232 or writexpress@mchsi.com.